Percy's Forest
by linneafairy
Summary: Alternate ending to the HoO series... and what happens afterward.
I just kinda thought of this, and I know I haven't been updating lately- sorry. It's a one-shot... Maybe I'll do two chapters... I dunno. Sooo, here you guys go.

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There was a boy in the forest. The whispers spread like wildfire through the trees. Why is he here? Doesn't he know it's a trap? Couldn't he see the flickers of light, the souls that Gaea preyed on to aid her rise, moving through the trees? This was the forest of tears, the final resting place for us. We had been dragged here against our will. But him? He walked with a purpose, not even bothering to muffle the crunch of his boots in the leaves. His piercing sea green eyes were determined- no, resigned. He knew exactly what he was doing. He knew.

Each step brought him closer to his end.

He kept on walking.

He was almost to the clearing. Stop, we whispered. Don't go. You'll never leave. Stop. He heard us. "Stay out of this," he said, his words piercing the cold silence of the forest. And he walked forward.

She was already there. Waiting.

"Hello, Jackson. Ready to give yourself over?" said Gaea.

A hint of a smile tugged at his mouth. "You really think I'm about to do that?"

"You did swear on the river Styx."

"I swore to meet you here. I never swore to give myself over to you."

Gaea clucked her tongue. "Naughty boy. Don't worry. I brought reinforcements."

This, we knew. We had tried to warn him, but he didn't listen. They never listen. Listen...

There was a rustling the the trees, and then they emerged. The entirety of Gaea's army appeared behind her in all their glory.

The boy tensed.

"Ready to surrender yet?" asked Gaea, with a smug expression.

"Never."

Gaea's expression was replaced by one of anger. "There's no way you can defeat my army!"

"Well, I might be able to..." the boy tilted his head. "But that would require unleashing my full power. And I've been saving it up for you."

"You can't do anything to me!" Gaea said. "Not on your own! Where are your friends? Probably hiding somewhere around here, waiting to jump in and fight."

"As I swore, they are still on the Argo II. I came alone," he replied.

"You're telling the truth. HOW ARE YOU TELLING THE TRUTH? You clearly didn't come here just to tell me you won't surrender!"

"Nice job, Sherlock."

We tittered. Gaea cast her cold eyes towards us, and silence ensued.

"Why are you here, then?" Gaea demanded.

"I feel, somehow, that I owe you at least a basic explanation before I do this. Athena and Morpheus, of all gods, shared with me an ancient magic that was discovered in ancient times. It happens to consist of three distinct 'spells.' One is to destroy. One is to kill Primordials. And one is to put them in eternal sleep. That's what I intend to do."

"But you can't!" Gaea shrieked. "You need an extremely powerful soul to do that! Only a god could do that. Maybe not even a god!"

The boy locked eyes with Gaea. "That's where I come in."

"No.." she breathed. "You're the one, aren't you." It wasn't a question. The boy nodded, an almost imperceptible gesture, but Gaea caught it. So did we. We had known from the beginning he stepped into our forest. He radiated power. It was prophesied that during the time of war, there would be one demigod who would surpass even the gods in power, who would sacrifice everything to save everything. We knew.

"A choice you cannot make... But I didn't... How did you hide?"

"I have my ways." The boy looked up, finding the sky dark sky streaked with blood-red light. The sun was beginning to rise. "If they knew, they would stop me. But it must happen. This is my choice. And it must be done now."

He dropped to his knees, feeling the water from the damp ground seep through his jeans, and placed his hands on the ground.

"NO! STOP!" wailed Gaea. "YOU CAN'T DO THIS! ARMY, ATTACK!"

"I, Perseus Achilles Jackson, call upon the soul-bonds," he said. "Bind Gaea with the endless sleep."

There was a flash like lightning, a blast that vaporized the entire army, and the boy stood again, his eyes not longer green but shining white with energy. He brought up his hand towards Gaea, and a beam of white light shot toward Gaea, wrapping around her left ankle like a horrible snake. The boy spread his hands, and the white spread below her, knocking her off her feet. The light rose into the air, cutting off the Primordial's source of power, leaving her stranded. He brought his hands back together, and the platform grew shining trees, interlocking and growing together until they formed a cage. A final flick of his wrist brought up three more snake-chains, which reared up and wrapped around the Primordial's wrists and other ankle, chaining her to the cage.

"Don't do this... Think of Annabeth..."

We saw the boy falter, but he knew he could not stop.

"It is done. Bind for all eternity."

A flash of green, and he was gone, and Gaea asleep in her cage.

We were free.

We ran.

I hesitated just a second, enough to glance back to see the glowing flowers bloom around the clearing, the final bond. Only the pure of heart could enter now.

 _Thank you._

I was gone.


End file.
